During SEC Media Days in Dallas, Texas, former Alabama head football coach Nick Saban predicted that Georgia and Texas would face each other in Atlanta instead of Alabama.
On Friday, Saban revealed his ulterior motive for not including his former school in his SEC title prediction.
During an appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show,” Saban admitted that it was meant to be "reverse rat poison" for his former team.
“I picked Georgia and Texas because it’s reverse rat poison for Alabama. It’s a motivating factor for them not to get picked,” said Saban. “I hated to be picked first or second because you don’t know how that’s going to impact your team psychologically. These kids are affected a lot by what they read, what they hear, what they see. I didn’t want them to see anything too good.”
Saban also emphasized how much he hated the predictions while he was the Crimson Tide's coach and how he only makes them now because it’s part of his new job with ESPN.
"I always hated it. I'm going to hate it on this show,” Saban said. “I might as well say it right off the bat. This show, any show, or 'Game Day.' Having to predict and make hypothetical decisions about who's going to win a game, who's going to win the championship, who's going to win what conference. I've always hated that."
Now that making picks is part of his job, Saban is using his platform to give Kalen DeBoer and the Crimson Tide a little extra motivation going into the upcoming season by not showering them with the high praise they were accustomed to when he was the head coach.
DeBoer will make his debut with the Crimson Tide on August 31 against Western Kentucky.
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